Spiritual practice of confession now growing – even among Protestants

The sign at the church door read: “Confession: Thurs-days,
1-3 p.m.” But this was not a Catholic parish – it was a Methodist
church.

It may be a sign of the times. A growing number of Christians
– including Protestants – are looking to confession as a spiritual
practice that offers comfort and healing.

The sign at the church door read: “Confession: Thurs-days,
1-3 p.m.” But this was not a Catholic parish – it was a Methodist
church.

It may be a sign of the times. A growing number of Christians
– including Protestants – are looking to confession as a spiritual
practice that offers comfort and healing.

“The tradition of confession fell on hard times … but
is today making a comeback,” says Jim Forest, author of “Confession:
Doorway to Forgiveness” (Orbis).

“Frequently, people will come to me asking for counseling
or spiritual direction, but what they really want is to make confession,”
says Natalie Van Kirk of Southern Methodist Universitys Graduate Program
of Religious Studies.

Individual confession to a priest has long been a tradition
in Catholic and Orthodox churches. But Protestant reformers of the 16th century
largely threw the practice out, offering only communal prayers of confession.
Now, some wonder if Protestantism threw the baby out with the bath water.

“Making confession in the presence of another human being
keeps us honest,” says Brian McPherson, senior pastor at Munger Place United
Methodist Church in Dallas. “We all know kings and queens of denial. Confession
removes that denial and makes us healthy.”

As senior pastor of University Park United Methodist in Dallas,
Thomas Robbins offered one-on-one confession a few years ago. With no Methodist
ritual for individual confession available, he wrote his own and put on his
robes to meet with church members. While there were few takers, he says he still
believes Methodism needs a liturgy for individual confession.

“Protestants tend to reduce everything to a logical exercise,”
Robbins says. “A ritual would help penetrate our rational defenses and
allow more healing to take place.”

It may be that Robbins was just a bit ahead of the curve. Best
sellers in spiritual formation, such as Richard Fosters “Celebration
of Discipline” and Marjorie Thompsons “Soul Feast,” include
sections on confession.

“You have people who didnt typically think of themselves
as going to confession reading more and more about it,” says
Frederick Schmidt, director of spiritual life and formation at Southern Methodist
University Perkins School of Theology.

Ecumenical dialogue fuels the fire as well, he notes.

For instance, author Foster is a Quaker, while Thompson is
a Presbyterian minister writing for a Methodist publishing house. “People
are more willing to look at spiritual disciplines across Christian traditions,”
Schmidt says.

Admission and forgiveness are biblical principles, says Becky
Tirabassi, author of “Change Your Life,” a Christian self-help book.
As a recovering alcoholic who has been sober since 1976, Tirabassi says she
thinks Twelve Step programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, work because they
require participants to confess wrongs.

Michael Baxter is a theology professor at the University of
Notre Dame. He says that he witnessed a surge in confessions after Sept. 11
and that college students generally have been more receptive to the idea in
recent years. “I think they are weary of a culture thats pandering
to them, thats saying, Do whatever you want to do,” he
says.

Why the new interest?

Many Christians who once dismissed confession as a punitive
or rote exercise now see it as a path to healing, a number of observers suggest.

“I think were rediscovering its potential for a
deeper relationship with God,” Van Kirk says. She cites a verse from the
New Testament Letter of James: “Confess your sins to one another … so
that you may be healed” (5:16).

Dianne May says she is convinced that confession heals. After
joining an Episcopal church in Coppell, Texas, her priest suggested she make
confession as a way of addressing ongoing emotional issues. She spent two weeks
reviewing her life and compiled a list of memories that elicited regret.

“It was a very intense, very emotional experience,”
she says. “Afterward, I literally felt a physical sense of relief. There
was this heaviness in my heart that was lifted.”

Although a lifelong Catholic, Joe Matyus of Garland, Texas,
says he was “lukewarm” about confession when he was young. However,
recently, a deeper study of Christian theology convinced him of its value, he
says.

“More Catholics are wanting to know why we do things like
confession,” he says. “When they understand the reason for confession,
theyre more interested.”

Catholics returning to confession may find it a different experience
from that of their childhood. “Its not what you see on (television),”
says Denise Phillips, director of campus ministry at the University of Dallas,
a Catholic school. “The priest isnt behind a screen in this dim,
dark box. Most churches have reconciliation rooms instead of confessionals.
You can choose to sit face to face with the priest.”

Similarly, penances are more creative and relevant. “I
dont know of any priests who just dole out three Hail Marys anymore,”
says the Edward Vacek, a Catholic priest in Cambridge, Mass. “If someone
confesses hes not getting along with a family member, for example, I might
suggest that he pray and try to picture the family member as God would see that
person.”

Along those lines, Mays priest prescribed an unusual
penance as well – reading C.S. Lewis “The Chronicles of
Narnia” to help tackle some of her questions about faith.

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